


In a Mirror, Dark-Side-ly

by FemaleSpock



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: AU, Badass Sith Leia, But maybe he actually is, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Fandom Trumps Hate, Good-guy Snoke, Humor, Hux is Not Nice, Implied Sexual Content, Ineffectual Villain Kylo Ren, M/M, Mirror Universe, family squabbles, incongruous real world references, porgs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-17
Updated: 2018-05-17
Packaged: 2019-05-08 07:29:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,064
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14689374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FemaleSpock/pseuds/FemaleSpock
Summary: Supreme Leader Leia is the biggest badass in the universe and there's nothing that Hux wants more than to her right-hand man...except maybe being adopted by her. There's only one problem: her utterly useless son.Meanwhile, Kylo has problems of his own: he's constantly failing missions, Snoke won't stop skyping him, and he loves porgs way too much to be a true member of the First Order. Not to mention his crush on a certain dashingly evil ginger General...-Mirrorverse AU Written for sfvamp for Fandom Trumps Hate 2018.





	In a Mirror, Dark-Side-ly

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sfvamp](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sfvamp/gifts).



General Hux woke up bright and early that morning, pre-empting his alarm by thirty minutes. He got dressed with maximum efficiency, making sure to groom his hair to perfection. He then changed Millicent’s water and food, before striding off to wait in the hangar bay. He already knew it was going to be a great day: he could practically smell failure on the air. Not his failure, of course, but that of his rival and general waste of space, Kylo Ren. He wouldn’t even have been worth bothering with if he hadn’t been the sole biological descendant of Supreme Leader Leia but he was, so Hux had to actually put in the effort to try to undermine him as much as possible.

See, _he_ was Leia’s natural heir, a true son to her in every way except blood, but if he wanted that recognition he was going to have to deal with Kylo first. Not that it would be hard, the man was about as tough as soft tofu. He spotted Kylo’s ship returning to the hanger and Hux prepared to begin his barrage of insults. He couldn’t wait to see what spectacular failure had occurred this time. The ship docked and Hux stood outside, waiting until Kylo emerged with an extremely sheepish look on his face. Oh, this was going to be fun.

“ _Lord Ren_ ,” said Hux, his voice dripping with extreme disdain. “I see you’ve returned empty-handed again.”

“Well, you see...I tracked my uncle’s location to an island that is strong in the Dark-Side but…”He looked away, avoiding eye contact. “The island is an Official Porg Sanctuary…I couldn’t intrude. The nuns wouldn’t even allow me to land. I mean, the porgs aren’t our targets so it didn’t make sense to disturb…”

Hux cut him off. “So you saw some sweet little animals and all of a sudden you couldn’t go through with it? That’s real cute.”

Kylo blushed a deep red and occupied himself with picking at a loose thread on the dark robes that threatened to swamp his truly pathetic physique.

Hux grinned. “Cat got your tongue?”

“What’s a-”

Supreme Leader Leia approached, marching in with long confident strides, a frown on her face. “How many times do I have to tell you to keep your mask on? There’s no blushing on the Dark-Side.”

Kylo muttered something inaudible under his breath.

“Supreme Leader,” said Hux, bowing. He at least was able to give the Supreme Leader the respect she deserved, unlike someone he could mention. “Lord Ren has been unable to bring your brother out of his pilgrimage of darkness. It seems…it seems that he was foiled by the presence of…what were they called again?”

“Porgs,” said Kylo, in a sulky voice.

“Ah yes, Porgs. The most fearsome creatures in the universe, apparently.” Hux paused. “So in summary, Kylo failed to pull Master Skywalker away from his Evanescence CDs because of…Porgs.”

Kylo hung his head, mumbling under his breath. “You don’t have to keep repeating it. She got it the first time.”

Hux gestured theatrically to Kylo. “There you have it: an admission of incompetence.”

Leia’s eyes glowed yellow. “The men of this family are useless. Fine, leave your uncle to his…sacred texts. Maybe you’ll do us all a favour and join him there.” She turned to Hux. “Come, General, we have other business to attend to.”

Hux followed, turning around to throw one last smirk at Kylo. Kylo, for his part, scowled and pulled his helmet petulantly over his head.

Oh, that was cute.

And by cute he, of course, meant pathetic.

 

* * *

 

Kylo stomped all the way to his room. It wasn’t his fault that the porgs had been too cute to mess with. Nature had given them the most powerful weapons of all in those two big beady eyes. Besides, why did his mom even need Uncle Luke anyways? He was the one who’d trained him so badly in the first place – sometimes even showing him compassion after he messed up yet again. It was Luke’s fault that he sometimes felt the call to the light…He sighed. Maybe he should consider Snoke’s offer more seriously but he couldn’t leave his family, could he?

He pulled off his helmet and stripped off his clothes, delving into the secret compartment of his wardrobe for the outfit he’d never dare wear out in public: the cream coloured robes of a Jedi, his ultimate comfort clothes. Just the act of pulling them on soothed the rampage inside him. Maybe, one day they could be his for real…But no, that wasn’t his family’s path and besides, his mother would kill him if he became a Jedi and that wasn’t a metaphor.

Sighing, he padded over to his desk and pulled out his calligraphy set.  If everything else failed, this was what calmed his nerves. You couldn’t think about anything else, just the fine motions of the brush on the page. He took the book of poetry Uncle Luke had left behind (apparently it was a family heirloom), flipping to a random page, and started to copy. There was nothing particularly reassuring about the poem itself, which read:

_Sand is the greatest irritation in life_

_That is why it is the best_

_Whining about it will help you find a wife_

_Her love will be your greatest test_

 

In fact, Kylo was slightly confused as to what it was even supposed to mean. It was of little consequence though, it was the act of writing the words, not the words themselves that mattered. He felt his anger diminish, the Dark-Side ebbing away. He knew that should be a bad thing, that he should want the power of rage but it just felt so…icky. Was it really so long to love porgs and calligraphy and light colours? To his family it was but they couldn’t control what he did in his free time. Not if they didn’t know about it.

After twenty minutes, when he’d almost forgotten the morning’s confrontation, his concentration was broken by the buzzing of his phone. He jumped, the brush jolting in his hands. Kylo frowned at the smudged ink before setting the brush down and picking up the phone.

Oh, another skype call from Snoke. He pressed accept: “Hello?”

There was a crackle of sound. Snoke appeared and the image immediately froze.

Kylo rolled his eyes. This again. “Hello?”

“Can you-”

“You’re breaking up.”

“Hello, Ben?” The picture and sound clarified and Snoke was displayed in all gold-robed glory.

“I can hear you now.”

“Excellent. I can see that you’re wearing the robes I sent you,” said Snoke.

Kylo looked down. “Oh yeah, thanks.” He bit his lip. He knew he shouldn’t be talking to Snoke at all, let alone accepting gifts from him, but was it his fault that the man…creature…man-creature had an online shopping addiction? In a way, it was kind of evil to accept these gifts when he had no intention of switching sides. He might even be able to get some insider information to impress his mom with.

“They look good on you, very natural.” Snoke paused. “I think gold ones to match mine would look even better but these are still good.”

“Yeah, I just think that gold robes are…” Kylo tried to think of a way to put it delicately. “They’re more a part of your unique style. I wouldn’t want to imitate that.”

Snoke preened. “I understand. Anyways, I’m sending you a clip-on braid to go with the robes set.”

Kylo genuinely broke into a smile at the thought of it. “Thanks.”

“So have you given any more thought to my offer?” Snoke asked.

Kylo flinched, this was the topic he’d wanted to avoid. “I have, it’s…it’s just such a bad time, you know? My mom is already angry enough because I didn’t bring Uncle Luke out of his sulk.”

“She’s always going to be angry, Ben. That’s the Dark-Side of the Force.” Snoke paused, a grandfatherly look of affection on his face. “Don’t you want love, Ben? Don’t you want a family? You won’t find it there.”

He wanted to say yes, he really did, but he couldn’t quite bring himself to answer. “I…”

“Yes, Ben?”

“I need more time.” He wracked his brain for an excuse. “I sense my mom coming down the hall and I can’t have her catch me.”

Snoke grimaced at the thought of it. “I have to go anyway; I’m putting in a bid on some vintage Gucci slippers – cross your fingers for me.”

The call cut out and Kylo was left alone with his doubts. Maybe Snoke was right. Maybe he did belong on the side of the Light. But he wasn’t ready to leave. Not with Hux around to pull him back to the Dark-Side inch by inch. He was everything Kylo had ever wanted to be – ruthless, committed, beloved by Leia – and at first Kylo had hated him for that. He’d hated this man who’d usurped his place as a son in his mother’s heart but that hatred had proven useful in battering down the accursed light and so he’d developed…an appreciation for the man. An appreciation that had quickly turned into an obsession.

A very, very confusing obsession. Hux was just so mean to Kylo…which was good because that was why he’d liked him in the first place but also bad because it probably meant he hated Kylo. Which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing because his parents hated each other a lot and they’d still managed to have him. “I hate you,”/“I know,” - that was all he ever heard his parents say. But then again, he didn’t exactly want his parent’s marriage either. His father hadn’t even been seen in a couple of years and Leia had relished telling Kylo that it was his fault that he had left this time.

He wanted to get closer to Hux but given his track record, it’d probably only push him away.

It was just one of a million things he had to figure out. Kylo flopped onto the bed, hugging a pillow close to his body. Taking a moment to consider it, he pulled out his phone and texted Snoke asking him to buy him a porg plushie. No, better yet, an actual porg. If he was going to string him along, might as well get as much as he could out of it.

See, he could be evil when he wanted to.

 

* * *

 

Hux’s day was off to a terrible start. He’d gotten up, as usual, made himself look dashingly evil, then went to leave for his morning patrol. There was only one problem: as he’d opened the door, Millicent had jumped out, careening down the hallways at a frightening speed. Panic hit Hux like a wall of water – no-one knew about Millicent, no-one could know about Millicent. What would the scumbags and villains do to a poor creature like her if they found her?

Leaping to action, Hux sprinted off after her, chasing her down the hallways and around the corner, stumbling as he slipped on the well-polished floors. He steadied himself, scanning the corridor for Millie. His heart sunk as he was confronted by the sight of Kylo skidding across the hallway, directly in Millicent’s path. Kylo’s eyes widened as he spotted her. Hux smirked as Kylo bent down to pick up Millie – he’d trained her to resist capture by any means necessary. She’d proved easier to train than some of those stormtroopers. Cats were naturally vicious creatures, and secretly he considered her his greatest achievement. Kylo took Millie into his arms and she…curled into a ball, starting to purr as Kylo stroked her fur.

Well, that was not supposed to happen…Not supposed to happen at all. He strode over, crossing his arms. “If you dare tell anyone about this, I’ll tell your mother that you’ve been sliding around in your socks…again.”

Kylo looked up at him with huge dark eyes. “Huh? Oh this creature belongs to you?”

“Yes. If you say anything…” The last thing he wanted was for someone to take out their anger with him on Millie, especially not through the blundering of this idiot.

“She’s so cute!” exclaimed Kylo. “What is she?”

Hux uncrossed his arms. “She’s a cat, Ren.”

He tilted his head to one side. “A cat?”

“I don’t have time to stand around and chat,” said Hux, taking Millie out of Kylo’s arms. Millie, for her part, looked insultingly unwilling to part from Kylo. And here Hux thought she had better taste.

Kylo looked a little crestfallen. “Oh, right, of course.”

“Just google it.”

“I will!” said Kylo, so cheerily that Hux was entirely sure that he’d missed the sarcasm.

 

* * *

 

 

The day after the escaped cat incident, everyone gathered for a meeting. Apparently, Poe Dameron had some important news, which was enough to put Hux in the worst of moods. There was something about Poe’s grinning face that Hux found particularly punchable today. They’d never really seen eye to eye on the way things should be run (Poe had disobeyed direct orders more than a few times) and Hux had always had the distinct impression that Poe was always trying to replace him as Leia’s right-hand man. That smug look on his face probably meant that he thought he was getting one step further to achieving it.

Kylo, on the other hand, was resting his elbow on the desk and his face on his hand, his eyelids drooping slowly, slowly. His mouth was almost completely slack. Overall, the entire impression was that of complete unprofessionalism. No doubt he had been up all night chewing bubblegum or whatever it was he did in his spare time. Hux glared at him but he didn’t even seem to notice, he was that much in his own world.

“Alright Dameron,” said Leia and everyone looked towards here. “What have you got for us?”

Poe ran a hand through his hair. “Well, I’ve managed to make contact with the Resistance. One of their top members is willing to defect – he’ll give us insider information about the workings of the Resistance including intelligence on Jedi Master Snoke.”

Hux cursed internally. That did sound useful but he vowed not to show anything on his face as he spoke. “Who exactly is this insider? How did you first make contact with him? It could, after all, be a trap.”

“He reached out to me over the internet…His name is Finn and I can assure you that he’s definitely for real,” Poe said. “He hates General Phasma, says that she just doesn’t have the guts to make a real strike. She’s too soft on the recruits.”

“Commander Dameron, how many times have we told you that using internet dating apps is not an officially sanctioned form of recruitment?” asked Holdo, mildly.

Poe shrugged. “I never said I met him on a dating app.”

Holdo quirked an eyebrow. “Did you though?”

“Yes.”

A flirtatious smile flickered across her face. Ugh. If Poe weren’t so charming, he wouldn’t get away with half this stuff. How had he even managed to get onto this subject with someone he met on a dating app? Everyone on Spacedr ghosted Hux after like three messages. He wasn’t sure what he was doing wrong but if he had to be like Dameron to succeed, he wasn’t sure he wanted to do things right.

“It doesn’t matter how they met, what’s important is the information,” Leia said, waving away the concern.

Looked like it was up to him to make the obvious points. “Right but how do we know that he has any information worth bargaining for… I mean, I presume he’s asking for something in return, so I’d be very interested to hear what exactly he’s bringing to the table. For all we know, he may just be the Resistance’s cleaner.”

Poe smiled. “I was getting to that if you’d let me-” He stopped as there was a slight bang as Kylo slumped forward, his hand banging against the table, startling awake.

“I errr…sorry,” mumbled Kylo, wiping some drool from his mouth. Hux suppressed a snicker at the look of annoyance on Dameron’s face. Kylo wasn’t useful for much but at least it was someone else’s day he was ruining.

“Don’t apologise,” snapped Leia. 

“But…”

“As I was just saying-” started Dameron in vain.

“If you’re going to talk back to me, you’re going to have to do a lot better than that,” said Leia, rising to her feet. “At your age, I had already attempted to kill my father three times and all you can do is whine.”

Yet the whining continued: “Mooooom, you’re embarrassing me.” 

“I think you’re doing that yourself,” muttered Hux and Leia snorted. Kylo’s eyes flickered to Hux, looking oddly…betrayed somehow. Hux broke eye contact, refocusing his attention on Dameron’s angry face. It wasn’t his fault Kylo couldn’t take the truth. He’d never claimed to be his friend at any point whatsoever, so it was really just Kylo’s stupidity to expect any kindness from Hux. There was no reason for Hux to feel a pang in his chest, none at all and yet…

“The information!” Dameron said, his voice straining in his throat.

Kylo pouted. “Fine, I’m going to my room.”

Leia Force-closed the doors. “Sit back at the table. You’re done when I say you’re done.”

“Fine!” He stomped back to his seat, glowering at no-one in particular.

“Go on, Poe, we’re all listening. Aren’t we, Kylo?”

Kylo screwed up his face like a child, refusing to answer.

Poe gave a strained smile. “As I was saying, Finn has already given us a key piece of information: it seems that he has met a girl…”

“Wouldn’t have thought that would please you,” mumbled Kylo under his breath.

Hux snorted despite himself.  “Maybe it’s a three-way.”

Kylo started to giggle like a school-girl and Hux had to stifle a laugh of his own as their eyes met across the table. 

Dameron swallowed his rage. “Is that all you two can think about? I suppose deprivation must make you _very_ aware of everything you’re missing out on. It’s never been a problem for me, so I wouldn’t know.” He gave a dismissive shrug. “Anyways, the girl is Force-sensitive girl. He’s been keeping her away from Snoke for the time being and is willing to bring her to the First Order in exchange for a position in our military.”

“Oh, is that all?” scoffed Hux, though internally he was cursing. Force stuff always ended up coming first. There was no way Leia wouldn’t take the deal.  “Let me guess, he fancies himself an admiral.”

“Captain of the Stormtroopers, actually.”

“How modest.”

“Set up a meeting with him. We can assess his suitability for the post once he’s given us the girl and the information,” said Leia, decisively.

Dameron threw a triumphant smirk at Hux. “Right away, Supreme Leader.”

“Meeting dismissed,” said Leia, releasing the doors and striding out of the room.

The others followed one by one, all except Kylo, who was slumped on the table. Hux watched him for a moment, eyebrows shooting up as his loud breathing turned into full-on earth-rumbling snores. A nasty smile spread across Hux’s face. The idiot was actually asleep and alone in his company. Hux could do anything if he moved carefully enough – cut a chunk out of his hair, scribble on his face, or steal his phone...Now that was an idea with potential. There had to be something incriminating on there.

He crept over, his steps as a light as a cat’s. He stood behind Kylo, listening to the rhythm of his breathing for a while. Asleep, definitely asleep. Heart skipping a beat, Hux started to slide his hand down Kylo’s chest into his front pocket and paused. No change. In fact, he could feel the rise and fall of Kylo’s chest underneath him. This definitely felt wrong in some way he couldn’t quite quantify. But this was the Dark Side – wrong was supposed to be their speciality. Putting aside all doubts, Hux closed his hand around the phone.

“Wha…” said Kylo, eyes blinking open suddenly.

Hux’s heart leapt with panic, quickly withdrawing his hand. Damnit! He’d been so close. “I er…I was just trying to wake you. You fell asleep in the conference room.”

Kylo gave him a sleepy smile. “Oh…oh, thanks.”

“Make sure to sleep before meetings next time or your mum’s going to prune the family tree even further.”

“I know.” Kylo rubbed his eyes. “I just couldn’t stop myself…After meeting Millie, I decided to find out more about cats and I started watching cat videos and they were just so cute…I definitely want one.”

“Well…don’t let it get in the way of your duties.” Damn it, why was he making it so hard to be strict with him? If Supreme Leader Leia saw this…No, he just didn’t want to get caught trying to swipe his phone. Kylo might be a loser but he still had the Force…

Kylo sighed, looking chastened despite the mildness of Hux’s rebuke. “I know.”

Hux rolled his eyes, more at himself than at Kylo, and said: “you know, you can come and visit Millie if you want. She doesn’t get out much and I’m sure she’d appreciate a visitor.”

“Really?” Kylo’s entire face lit up. “I can come play with her?”

“Sure,” said Hux, already regretting it.

“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

 

* * *

 

 

Kylo paced outside Hux’s door for an embarrassingly long time. Had he really meant it when he’d said Kylo could come over to play with Millie? Maybe he was just saying it to be nice…No, that would have been entirely out of character for Hux. Kylo stilled in sudden realisation. Of course! Hux would never had asked him purely out of the kindness of his own heart. There had to be an ulterior motive. Kylo tilted his head to the side, considering the options.

  1. Hux was bored of looking after Millie and was taking advantage of Kylo’s interest to reduce his own workload
  2. This was a horrible trick that was going to come back to bite Kylo in the ass in either the short term or the long term
  3. Hux was…interested in him? Maybe looking to seduce him for information or power?



 

He had to dismiss option a right off – Hux was definitely not one to shy away from hard work and besides, how could anyone get bored of Millie? It just wasn’t realistic. Option c was probably just wishful thinking on his part – there was no way that he’d ever see any advantage in seducing Kylo. Unfortunately, knowing Hux is was probably option b that was the most likely. But even knowing that, he still couldn’t find it within himself to turn away…

“What are you doing lurking outside General Hux’s quarters?”

The sound of his mother’s voice was enough to send chills running down his spine. He spun around, cheeks flushing red. “Nothing.”

Leia raised an eyebrow. “You think you’d be able to lie properly at least.”

“I’m not lying. I’m just standing here, practising my…my….evil loiter.” He folded his arms and scowled. “See.”

She shook her head. “There’s no such thing as an evil loiter.”

“Yeah? Explain the news reports complaining about all the loitering youths. I’m an anti-social menace to society.”

“Firstly, you’re not a menace to society, just the operations of this fleet. Secondly, if you think this diversion tactic is working, you’re profoundly mistaken.” She leaned in closer, her gaze fixed upon his face. “You know your mother always finds out. Better to just come clean.”

Kylo gulped but stood strong. Hux would definitely kill him if he revealed his little secret and besides, he couldn’t let anything happen to Millie. “I’m telling the truth.”

She withdrew, shaking her head again. “I’m onto you, kid.”

Kylo waited until she was definitely gone before pressing the buzzer for Hux’s room. Hux answered right away, his face full of confusion. He looked like he had just woken up from a long nap: his hair flopped over the side of his face, untamed by gel, and he seemed to be wearing nothing but a long black robe.

“Errr, hi…” said Kylo, suddenly nervous again. He’d never once seen Hux in such a state of undress but he liked it. A lot. “You said that I could see Millicent?”

Hux yawned. “What? Oh yes, I suppose I did.”

“Is this a bad time? Should I come back later? I’m really sorry that I disturbed you. I didn’t know that you-”

Hux rolled his eyes. “Stop apologising. It’s embarrassing.” He paused. “I needed to get up for my shift anyway. You can play with her whilst I get ready.”

A smile broke across Kylo’s face. “Thank you!”

Hux stepped away from the door, allowing Kylo in. “Just don’t touch any of my things.”

Walking into Hux’s room was like stepping into another world: the bones of the room were all as standard of course, the layout identical to Kylo’s own room, but the décor made it feel entirely different. When Kylo had imagined visiting Hux’s room (as he had all too many times), he’d done nothing more than strip away the decorative touches in his own room, but it was clear now that Hux had put some thought into the aesthetic of his room. There were parts that might be expected: the sleek ice-blue sofa; the touchscreen module embedded in the wall, displaying Hux’s daily schedule; the framed portrait of famed Sith Lord Yoda…But there was more to the room than that. Half of the room was dedicated to Millicent – all pillows and toys and empty cardboard boxes – and as such was coated in a fine layer of ginger hair. The two sides of the room were so at odds that Kylo couldn’t quite comprehend that it was all just Hux’s room.

“You look stupid with your mouth, hanging out like that.” He pointed towards the giant pink fluffy pillow where Millicent sat. “Go play with her if you like. I’m going to use the shower.”

Kylo quickly scurried over to where Millicent sat, if only to avoid having Hux see any reaction at the mention of his using the shower. He knelt down and focused all his attention on the adorable creature before him, which admittedly wasn’t hard. “Hi, Millie.”

She yawned and stretched a little, causing Kylo to melt inside. Without hesitation, he reached out and started to stroke her soft, soft fur. Contentment turned to pure delight as Millie started to purr. So enraptured was he, he barely noticed the soft sound of the bathroom door shutting behind Hux. It was only when the water started to run that Kylo’s thoughts were lead back inevitably to the idea of Hux behind that door. Naked. Water dripping down his body.

“I don’t suppose your owner would be interested in an idiot like me?” he said aloud.

Millie just looked up with him with wide green eyes and Kylo felt even more like an idiot than he ever did.

“I’m just not very good at being evil,” he confessed, sighing. “Hux is so much better at being bad than me. I can’t imagine he’d ever be interested in me…”

A gentle meow was the only response he got from Millie but somehow it felt more listened to than he had in years.

“That said, he does have you. He can’t be all bad if he likes fluffy creatures as much as I do. Maybe he’s faking it, just like me…”

Kylo jumped as he heard the sound of the shower shut off. Damn, he should have known that Hux’s showers were just as efficient as he was.  Not wanting to get caught having an emotional chat with Hux’s cat, he looked around for a good distraction. Grabbing a fishing rod toy, he quickly started to wave the dangling fish around near Millie’s face. She reached out to grab the fish and he jerked back. Getting up, she started to follow the path, always just a little too slow to catch the fish.

“Having fun, are you?” came Hux’s voice.

Kylo spun around and saw Hux, the General, all traces of sleep wiped from his face. Every hair was in place and his uniform was immaculate: business as usual.

“Yes!” Kylo admitted, face flushing at his own idiocy. “I mean, she seems skilled at hunting?”

A smug smile twitched on Hux’s lips. “I trained her myself.”

“No wonder!”

Hux eyed him with suspicion. “Anyway, I have to go now, so if you wouldn’t mind exiting my quarters…”

“Oh, of course!” He paused, fiddling with the toy fish. “Could I…Do you think that…”

Hux looked at him for a long moment, his gaze steady. “Yes, you can come play with her again.”

It didn’t feel like an exaggeration to say that it was the happiest moment of Kylo’s life.

 

* * *

 

 

Hux hadn’t expected much when he’d extended the offer to Kylo. He’d figured he’d come maybe a couple of times and then get bored and forget but it’d seemed that he’d underestimated the deep love the man had for furry creatures of all kinds because Kylo came every single day. Sometimes multiple times per day. It had gotten to the point where Hux was more surprised when he _wasn’t_ there. It just showed you could get used to anything, even having dweebs hanging around every day. I mean, it was great for Millie - Hux had always worried that she was bored just sitting around all by herself – and it wasn’t like it was any skin off his nose.

His phone buzzed – a message from Leia. As ever, she had expertly encrypted the message using a combination of chatspeak and emojis but was well versed enough in her code to understand the true message: she wanted to see him. His heart started to race a little harder – maybe she was going to promote him! Or maybe she had a lead that would help them crush the Resistance once and for all. He straightened his uniform and power-walked over to her office as quickly as was possible without making it seem like he was rushing.

“Supreme Leader,” he said, embarrassed that he was almost out of breath when he got there. “You asked to see me.”

She smiled. “Sit down, Hux.”

He did as she commanded, excitement turning to worry. Perhaps this was not a congratulatory meeting after all. “Is there something you need, Supreme Leader?”

“Well, I’ve been having rather a lot of difficulty with my son lately.” She sank her head into her hand. “I tried my best to bring him up wrong but the boy doesn’t have an evil bone in his body.”

“His idea of an evil deed was baking chocolate chip muffins that had broccoli inside when you bit into them. Everyone watch out for the dangers of nutrition!”

Leia scowled at the memory of it. “That actually was pretty evil.” She shook her head. “So you agree with my assessment then?”

“One hundred percent. He’s completely useless to the operations of the First Order, he said, without thinking about it.

Leia looked at him with an uncomfortably direct gaze. “Is that so?” Her tone was casual but Hux knew that was where all of the danger lay.

“I mean, it’s no reflection on you, Supreme Leader,” he squeaked. “And he’s not exactly doing any harm? I mean, that’s sort of the issue, but he’s not hurting the First Order. He’s sort of like…our mascot? He helps the morale by being so…ineffectual.”

 “I see.” Leia leaned back in her chair. “Would you say you he helps raise your morale, General Hux?”

Hux felt colour rush to his face, though he couldn’t quite explain why. He paused before answering, trying to regain his fraying composure. “I mean, I enjoy the jokes that we make at his expense?”

It felt like a half-truth now that he was saying out loud. It was just that Kylo was so inept that he never had to worry that he was going to stab him in the back at any second like he did with everyone else. In fact, it was kind of relaxing in a way, being around him…

He shook that thought from his mind. No. He couldn’t be going soft when he was so close to crushing the Resistance and winning Leia’s approval. Relaxation was for the weak.

“Those are funny,” admitted Leia, giving him one last glance over. “Well, General, I think I’ve heard everything I need to. You’re dismissed.”

In his gratitude to escape from that particular line of questioning, Hux scurried off into the corridors as fast as he could. He only realised that the Supreme Leader hadn’t actually asked him for any solutions to her Kylo-problem when he reached his own quarters. Murder was the way that Leia solved most of her problems but she wouldn’t do that to Kylo, would she? I mean, it would just be so…unnecessary in his case, like swatting a harmless creature. There’d be no victory for her in that, surely…Not that Hux cared. At all.

The door bleeped and Hux let Kylo in automatically.

“Hi!” said Kylo. In his hands he was holding premium cat food, the likes of which Hux had never been able to afford.

“You bought cat food,” he said, dumbfounded. “Where on earth did you get that?”

“The internet,” Kylo said, cheerily. “I figured it was worth giving her a little treat now and again.”

“That’s…that’s really nice,” said Hux, lost for words for once.

Kylo sighed. “I know, you don’t have to rub it in. I’m nice.”

Hux felt a sting of guilt, right in his chest. “Millie is an incredibly evil cat, so you’re contributing to her evil deeds by keeping her alive,” he said, matter-of-factly.

Kylo looked up at him with wide, hopeful eyes. “Really?”

“Yeah. Next time she scratches someone extra-hard, that’ll be because of you.”

Kylo beamed. “Thanks, Hux.”

A warm glow spread through Hux’s chest as he watched Kylo, happy once again, go to feed Millie her new premium cat food. He started to smile but a sudden thought struck all joy off his face.

Oh.

Oh no.

He wasn’t…He couldn’t…

But he was.

He was having feelings.

He was having feelings for Kylo. 

Why was this happening to him?

 

* * *

 

 

From the moment of revelation, Hux’s days were nothing but torment. Every day Kylo showed up at his place, all adorably oblivious, and drove Hux wild with uncontrollable emotions just by being himself. It was infuriating! Hux was evil and Kylo was so…not. How could he possibly have fallen for such a gangly idiot? He was watching him playing with Millie now and he still couldn’t fathom it, though the ache in his chest made him powerfully aware that he hadn’t just imagined those feelings. Whatever they were. 

“Hey Hux,” called Kylo, waving him over.

Begrudgingly, Hux got up out of his chair. “What is it?”

“I taught her to do a trick. Watch.” He waved around the toy fishing rod, getting Millie to chase it around the room before flicking it onto his lap, laughing as Millie barrelled over and caught it. “See. I tricked her into giving away free cuddles.”

Hux didn’t know what annoyed him more: the fact that Kylo’s trick was so pathetic or the fact that he wished he was the one getting his affection. “You’re an idiot and you have orange fur all over your shirt,” he said.

“Oh,” said Kylo and immediately took it off.

Hux could do nothing but stare. Kylo was pale and almost lacking in any noticeable musculature and yet, he felt the blood rushing to his face and…other areas. He looked so dainty, like he might break if Hux touched him…and Hux very much wanted to touch him.

“I’m sorry!” Kylo brought his hands up to cover his chest. “That was incredibly inappropriate of me.”

Coming from anyone else this would have been a seduction attempt but it was clear from Kylo’s blotchy red cheeks and shiny dark eyes that that wasn’t the case….which did nothing to deter Hux’s arousal. In fact, it only made it worse. He was just so innocent…sleeping with him would be like corrupting him.

And that’s when it hit him. Of course! This gave him an excu- a reason, to sleep with Kylo. It was practically his evil duty to do it at this point. He smirked as just the right line popped into his head. “You know, Kylo, there’s fur on your trousers too. I think you should take those off.”

Kylo stood there in silence. “This is a prank…right? A scheme of some sort...”

Hux rolled his eyes. There was something a little bit endearing about his insecurity – at least compared to the guys that Hux usually ran into, the kind of guys who acted like they were doing Hux a favour by deigning to sleep with him – but if this was going to happen, he was going to need Kylo to believe that he was for real. He thought about it for a moment and then stripped off his shirt and unbuttoned his trousers. After another moment’s thought, he decided that it was better to go all out and he shucked modesty altogether.

Kylo stared at Hux’s naked body, his eyes bulging out of his face. “You…you…” He swallowed, his whole body shuddering.

Hux raised one eyebrow. “Yes?”

“You have a huge dick!” Kylo blurted, clapping a hand over his mouth as he realised what he’d said.

Hux snorted. “I know.” His smile softened. “Now get over here if you want to see what it can do.”

Kylo successfully obeyed orders for once.

 

* * *

 

 

Hux woke before Kylo. He’d long since passed the need for an alarm (though he always set them anyway just to be doubly sure), programmed to get up and go in time for a shift. And he’d done so too, going straight into his routine before realising that:

     1)Today was his day off

     2) Kylo was sleeping in his bed, lightly snoring, his limbs flopping over the side of the mattress 

 

Hux paused, taking in the new reality of his situation. Kylo Ren was sleeping soundly in his bed. Kylo Ren was sleeping in his bed after a surprisingly gratifying night together (who knew that that innocent little Kylo had so many kinks?). Anxiety flared in his chest – what did this mean for him? How could he have lost control like that? Then he looked Kylo - at his messy black curls sticking up in all directions and his mouth hanging open in the most idiotic way – and decided not to care. Last night had been a reprise from all his scheming and it had felt good. There was nothing to worry about with Kylo and so he wasn’t going to worry.

Kylo stirred under the covers, slowly sitting up, wiping the drool from his mouth on the back of his hand. He looked at Hux, then back around the room, then back at Hux.

“See something you like?” Hux teased.

Kylo pinched his arm, winced, then broke out into a smile. “It’s not a dream this time!”

A genuine smile spread across Hux’s face despite himself. “You dream about this often, huh?” he said, trying to maintain some manner of decorum.

“Errr…yes?” Kylo’s cheeks turned pink.

Hux found himself desperately wanting to tease him but instead, he found blood rushing to his own face. He’d never been anyone’s dream guy before. “I…errr…”

Kylo bounded out of bed and planted a kiss on Hux’s cheek. “You were better than I imagined.”

Why did he have to be so disarmingly sincere? Hux could fend off an insult without having to stop to think but compliments were deadly. He put a scowl on his face. “Ugh, get away from me. You seriously need a shower.”

Kylo smiled like he saw right through it. “Okay.” He kissed Hux again. “I’ll be back when I meet your standards of cleanliness.”

Hux watched as he padded off to the shower, a spring in his step, and found his frown easing. He pulled on some clothes and decided that now would be an excellent time to kick back. He made himself a cup of tea and just watched Millie playing in her favourite cardboard box.

Bleep! Bleep! Bleep!

Hux’s calm was broken by the sharp sound. His phone! He scrambled around amongst the pile of clothing on the floor and pulled out his phone. Flipping it open, he pressed the green button automatically.

“Yes?”

“Ben? What happened to your voice, you sound like…British or something.”

Hux sighed. This had better not be another one of Dameron’s prank calls. It didn’t sound like him exactly but you never knew with voice enhancement software these days. “I think you have the wrong number.”

A pause. “Nope, you’re number two on my speed-dial. Do you have a cold? Maybe the fever is making you delirious.”

Now Hux knew that it had to be a joke - there was a set-up for a punchline in there, though he couldn’t quite work it out. “I have no time for this nonsense.”

“Okay, okay. I was just calling to tell you that there have been a few delays with that porg you wanted. Some kind of ridiculous import tax – you know how it is.”

Hux frowned. Porg…hadn’t he heard that somewhere before? Wasn’t that the creature that Kylo was always going on about? “Who did you say you were looking to speak to?”

“Ben, stop playing games…oh…oh…I get it. Your mother is there, isn’t she? Just pretend it’s a wrong number.”

A shiver ran down Hux’s spine and he went to inspect the phone. It looked the same as his, standard issue, but the texts on the phone were definitely not his. Especially not the long message chain with Snoke. With whom he was currently speaking.

It was an opportunity. A rare and valuable chance to strike a decisive blow and advance both the First Order and his career. So why was his heart sinking? “Whereabouts are you? I’ll meet you and pick up the er…Plorg myself.”

“Erm, no that’s alright. I’ll call another time,” said Snoke, hastily.

The phone line went dead.

Hux sat in silence.

So Kylo was a traitor.

He picked up the phone and started to scroll through the messages, reading each one without emotion. So it seemed this had been going on for a while.

After a while, Hux heard the sound of the shower cease. The doors opened and Kylo strode out, one towel around his waist, another around his neck, water dripping from the tips of his hair. “Back to work already?”

“Your phone rang. I thought it was mine, so I picked it up,” said Hux, flatly.

“Oh, okay…Who was it?” He paled. “It wasn’t my mom, was it? Because that’s going to be hard to explain…”

“It wasn’t your mom.”

Kylo blinked, looking innocent as could be. “Oh?”

Hux would have to give him this: he was a much better actor than he had ever given him credit for. “It was Snoke.”

Kylo’s eyes widened. “Wait, no, Hux. It’s not what you think!”

“I’ve read the messages.”

“I’m playing him – he, he sends me free stuff. I pretend I might defect and he goes along with it.”

Rage burst inside of him. “And in order for him to send you things, you had to give him our location, so either you’re the biggest idiot in the world or you’re a traitor!”

“I’m not either! I gave him a PO box address,” shouted Kylo. Admittedly he’d done so because the ship was always moving but that was neither here nor there. “I pick the stuff up after missions.”

“Oh,” said Hux. “You’ve still spent hours talking with the enemy! Conspiring! How can I trust you?”

“If I’m that untrustworthy, then I must be evil, therefore I wouldn’t defect to the Light-Side.”

Hux paused trying to parse that out. “I suppose…” He pursed his lips.

“I wouldn’t leave you or Millie,” said Kylo with embarrassing sincerity.

“I-” Hux hesitated. “I suppose I should monitor the situation until I get a better handle on it. I wouldn’t want to cut off a valuable source of information.”

Kylo nodded, giving a sigh of relief. “You won’t regret it.”

Hux grinned. “Not if you share the information. This might be just what I need to destroy Dameron once and for all.” He pulled Kylo into a kiss, feeling the possibilities bloom all around them.

 

* * *

 

 

General Hux was just walking down the hallways, trying to suppress the spring in his step, when Supreme Leader Leia caught up to him in the hallways.

She gestured to a meeting room. “Let’s go in here to talk.” She walked through the doors without waiting for his response. In the room sat several officers, all of whom seemed to be involved in an intense conversation about whether it was off-brand to sell white wine at the ship’s bar, and she dismissed them all with a single word: “leave.”

Anxiety began to flutter in Hux’s stomach. Was he in trouble? “How may I serve you Supreme Leader?” At Leia’s motion, he sat in the chair, wondering what was so serious it required dragging all of this.

For her part, Leia didn’t sit. She loomed above Hux, hands on hips. “You’re a loyal man, aren’t you, General Hux?”

Hux blinked. “Pardon?”

She stared him down. “It can be difficult to know who to trust on this ship. Now, you know I encourage _healthy competition_ amongst our people.  Fear keeps our men on their toes, stops them from getting too comfortable.”

Hux nodded, very aware of the heaviness of his own breathing. She knew that Hux had covered for Kylo and now this would be the end of him. “Supreme Leader-”

“But you, you’re a loyal man. Sure, you backstabbed your way to the top but, well, I’m hardly one to talk about patricide. I would have done the exact same thing if only my brother hadn’t gotten there first.” She leaned forward. “But you’re loyal to me and to the Order. Loyal to the point of sentimentality.”

Sentimental? He felt his face pinch up in annoyance. Where on earth did she get that from? “Supreme Leader, if you’re questioning my efficiency-”

She put a hand up to silence him. “You’re sleeping with my son.”

Heat rushed to Hux’s face. “Supreme Leader, I…I don’t know what to say.”

“Lost for words – that’s a first.” She laughed. “Now, I can’t say I disapprove. I’m hoping you’ll be a bad influence on him.”

“Yes, Supreme Leader.”

“But let’s get one thing straight…”

“Yes, Supreme Leader?”

Her eyes glowed yellow. “If you hurt my son, I’ll throw you out of the airlock. Is that clear?”

Hux flinched. “Yes, Supreme Leader.”

She smiled, the glow fading from her eyes. “I’m glad – you’re like a son to me anyway, so it’ll be good to make it official. I can just see it now – my son in beautiful black lace robes …traditional Sith chants playing as he walks down the aisle.”

 “Errrr…maybe in a few years time?” he squeaked. He liked Kylo more than he liked to admit but marriage? That was too far, too fast.

Leia burst into a laugh. “Oh, your face. Priceless.”  She stood there and continued to cackle for another few moments, having to wipe tears from her eyes. “I think I’m going to enjoy having you as part of the family.” And with that, she left as abruptly as she had arrived.

Hux sat there just blinking, trying to take in everything that had happened. Then he started to laugh himself. He thought he’d wanted to become the Supreme Leader’s son by usurping Kylo’s place, but this was so much better…

He stroked his beard, smiling to himself. Yes, everything from now on would go according to plan. 

**Author's Note:**

> Written for sfvamp a.k.a twistedsardonic for Fandom Trumps Hate. Thank you so much for your awesome donation and for the wonderful prompt! It was a blast shooting ideas back and forth with you and I hope you enjoy the finished product! :) It was super fun to play around with the characters like this!
> 
> Also, wow, it's been a while since I've been on Ao3. If anyone has any Kylux recs they'd like to send my way, please do so. I'm so out of the fanfic loop. 
> 
> As ever, please leave a comment if you liked it! I live for feedback! :)


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